HOW DO YOU PLEAD?

This morning my friend Julie (Libra) had to be in court at 8:00 AM to answer to a fireworks charge. As in most metropolitan cities, there is an ordinance in St. Louis that says you cannot discharge fireworks in the City. If you only knew Julie, she has 'the most' innocent face and demeanor which is probably why she can sneak past the tightest security. (See Julie's mug shot below.) I couldn't resist riding shotgun (no pun intended) to watch her stand in front of a judge. Our close friend Anna is a judge and we chuckled at the thought of her standing in front of Anna and watching Anna try to hold back the snickering. Anna is the friend whose son's wedding I went to in California back in June with Christine (Aquarius). . . but I digress.

Julie happens to have one of those really lucky birth dates and that girl can sneak in absolutely anywhere and get by with it. Julie has crashed more parties, sporting events, weddings, festivals and concerts than anyone I have ever known. She can sneak in anywhere that might be roped off, have a turnstyle, a metal detector or require a ticket stub with the skill of Emma Peel from The Avengers. You guessed it, Julie may be a Libra but she's Scorpio Strong and has the most ingenious and secretive ways of finding out anything. Julie will even do strange things to her hair or wear a disguise to create a different character just to sneak in somewhere or extract information. I've never seen anything like it. One day Julie stopped in front of my place while I was standing outside and asked if I wanted to go see Dolly Parton in concert. I said, "No thanks, I've already seen her in concert." Then I asked if she had tickets. She said, "No, I'm gonna sneak in." Then off she went. Not an hour later Julie called from the concert and I was hearing Dolly Parton sing in the background. You might also be thinking, "If she knows a judge, why not just get out of it?" The reason Julie didn't try to weasel out of the charge was because she was accepting responsibility. She was guilty of something she already knew she needed to stop doing. Paying a $150 fine ought to do the trick. (winky wink)

It's become a quite popular statement these days to say, "I accept responsibility." But what does that mean? I sat in the courtroom and watched each person before Julie shift the blame to someone else or on to something else. Several people stood in front of the judge with their wife, girlfriend or mother and when the judge would ask the defendent a question, then the wife, girlfriend or mother would leap in and try to answer it. The judge would have to silence the person and say, "He/she can speak for his/herself." He would remind the person standing next to them that it was the defendent that broke the law and they could answer for it themselves.

The judge was comical, kind, gentle, full of wisdom and even Loving at times. He told one defendent to go home and do something special for her mother. That was going to be her penance? My mind wandered and I thought, "I'll have to ask Anna who this man is." (winky wink) At one point he even made a subtle reference to scripture. It was so subtle but I knew the scripture had to do with King Soloman and a time when he was faced with a tough decision. Every so often he would address the entire courtroom and teach us all a lesson through the defendent standing in front of him. Since we were all there, why not leave us all a little better than he found us?

I started thinking about the justice system and how we actually have judges here on the planet to keep us in line and yes, to teach us a lesson. I saw the judge/defendent relationship play out in front of me that is the same as the parent/child or authority/child relationship. These relationships are a reflection of and are a smaller version of the Parent/child, Spirit/spirit, Creator/creative relationship that we are engaged in with God. He is . . The Parent, Spirit and Creator and we are a child, a spirit and creative. It's small scenes like this that remind me, one day, I'm going to have to stand in front of God just like that. How do you plead?

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

CAN YOU TAKE ME HIGHER?

This morning my musical DLG (Download from God) was "Higher" by the band Creed. As the first few notes began strumming and just before the drummer joined in the song, I knew exactly what this song referenced. A memory flashed into my mind that really hurt me. More than anything, I was deeply wounded. Some time back I had gone to a movie with a friend and during the movie I began to get lost in what was going down. As I leaned over to ask her a question about what was going on since I was completely missing the point, she made an accusation toward me that hurt my spirit to the core. It's as if the seven little words she uttered reached in and ripped out my heart. She said something that was so hurtful that my initial reaction was anger, so I said, "Shut up!" Now folks, if you are going to mess with someone . . make certain you go only as far as making them angry . . but never . . EVER injure their spirit. Getting past anger is a lot easier than getting past hurt.

To add kerosene and a match to this burning pain, without even discussing the movie with me first and what I didn't understand at the time, she chose to get on the phone with someone before we even exited the movie theater and tell that person that she just saw the movie. Apparently that person had seen the movie too. Then she began not only to talk loud enough so that I could hear but loud enough so that EVERYONE walking out of the movie theater could hear how she had recently been put in the same position and how she chose the higher outcome. As I walked ahead listening to her pump up her ego, I couldn't help but wonder why . . . as a much older sign than myself and someone who seeks to do similar work with others as I do . . . why didn't she take the time to "take me higher, to a place where blind men see." Why not take me with her to that higher place instead of minimizing who I am and building herself up? Why not talk to me after the movie and enlighten me?

As I laid in bed with the pain rushing all over me again the very last scene from the movie "The Devil's Advocate" popped into my head (starring Keanu Reeves, Al Pacino and Charlize Theron). Interestingly enough, the entire scene in question we were watching was about 'making a deal with the devil'. Then, through a major DLG I felt the Holy Spirit remind me that it was better to have innocently not understood what was going on than actually making that deal with the devil by choosing the role of standing in ego and vanity. [You can see the movie clip from "The Devil's Advocate" in the second video below after the words to the song.]

HIGHER by CREED[the words are below the video]

When dreaming I'm guided to another world
Time and time again
At sunrise I fight to stay asleep
'Cause I don't want to leave the comfort of this place
'Cause there's a hunger, a longing to escape
From the life I live when I'm awake
So let's go there
Let's make our escape
Come on, let's go there
Let's ask can we stay?

Can you take me Higher?
To a place where blind men see
Can you take me Higher?
To a place with golden streets

Although I would like our world to change
It helps me to appreciate
Those nights and those dreams
But, my friend, I'd sacrifice all those nights
If I could make the Earth and my dreams the same
The only difference is
To let love replace all our hate
So let's go there
Let's make our escape
Come on, let's go there
Let's ask can we stay?

Can you take me Higher?
To a place where blind men see
Can you take me Higher?
To a place with golden streets

TRANSITS AND PROGRESSIONS EXPLAINED

A Transits and Progressions Report is basically a personal daily horoscope that is tailored to your birth information. (Time, date and location) It is a report of all the planets that are transiting or progressing through your personal Natal Chart. In other words, when I write the Daily, Weekly, Monthly or Yearly Horoscopes, I am writing about the planets transiting through each sign, so they are written for an entire population of people who have the same sign. I cannot tailor it to every single person on the planet's birth information because that would be an impossible task, so I write it for an entire sign. See How are horoscopes written?

Folks, these Transits and Progressions Reports are incredibly accurate and precise because they are tailored to your birth date, time and location.Transits and Progressions Reports that I calculate will be considerably larger than you will probably find anywhere else because I also include the Moon which changes every 2 to 2-1/2 days. And since the Moon rules the emotions, then you can imagine how many times in one day the Moon can effect how you act and react in one full day. You will find points calculated in these reports for almost every single hour of the day. I run the 'transits to transits' ... and 'transits to natal'. In other words, 'transits to transits' effect everyone and 'transits to natal' effect you. 'Transits to transits' means how is one planet affecting another planet thereby impacting all of us . . and 'transits to natal' means how is a particular transiting planet affecting your personal Natal Chart thereby impacting just you. This will let you know if you lost your marbles or did everyone else. (winky wink)

Let's say you knew ahead of time that at 7:57 PM tonight the energy would be a challenge for you, then it would stand to reason that it would be a bad time to say, "Honey we need to talk." Nor would you want to sign important documents or make an agreement during a challenging aspect. Good luck making that agreement stick! The Transits and Progressions Reports that I calculate are absolutely huge (hundreds of pages) since there is a calculation for nearly every single hour of the day. Having said that, your best bet would be to print out the report for the week in question and then highlight in yellow all of the wonderful aspects you want to PLAY UP and use to your advantage and then highlight in pink those things you need to PLAY DOWN or keep your mouth shut. Why is that yellow highlights and pink softens? Hmmmmm

There have been many times when I read my Transit and Progression Report for the day and then turned right around and did exactly what I wasn't suppose to do just because I was impatient or had a momentary lapse of reason. I knew better and did it anyway! Dang, I can't stand it when that happens! In order to undo what I did, say what I need to say, write that certain e-mail or make that certain phone call, then I just look ahead in the report for the perfect time for me to make it all okay. Many times you can find a Good aspect to turn things around pretty quickly. The important thing to remember is that the planets are powerful forces and will catch you off guard if you are not prepared. So why not be prepared? The Transit and Progression Report will leave you more prepared than you would have been had you only read the horoscopes that were written for an entire population of people under one sign.

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

GRANNYBALL!

After my nine-day trip with my grandson "Big Tree" last week wow is my body sore! If you read the Daily Message yesterday titled, "Roughing It" then you know part of the reason why my body is so sore. The other reason is because the last four days of our trip I spent doing a kajillion CANNONBALLS in the water. Big Tree calls my cannonballs, grannyballs, because he says they aren't really cannonballs at all. Smarty Pants! I'm not sure how I do a cannonball but I can assure you that it is a little whacked and releases a lot of splash! And my favorite cannonball (but not really a cannonball) is when I take a flying leap with my arms and legs stretched out. It looks like I'm a hurdle jumper who is probably going to knock down the hurdle and fall on their face. Then I yell, "CANNONBALL!" and whoosh what a splash! It's a mess of a cannonball but it sure makes Big Tree laugh and there's nothing more beautiful than hearing a little child laugh, especially when it's your own child or grandchild's laugh. With all the different styles of grannyballs that I did, my body is still paying a severe price several days later.

It's no secret that I dance to the beat of my own drum and God really does know that I have no problem doing my own dance without needing the approval from a single soul on the planet. I'm concerned with His approval, not really anyone else's and I mean that. Compromising who I am in order to win the admiration and recognition of others is just not in my 'play' book. Literally! Take a peek around this website and you will see a mixture of everything that makes this site a perfect example of my dance that reflects the beat of my own drum. My beat was Graced to me by God and by golly I'm playing it! I play my game of life in way that is committed to my spirituality, my livelihood and my happiness while at the same time doesn't hurt anyone else (at least not consciously). Through shear trial and a lot of errors of experience I've found that being myself is probably the easiest thing I've ever done and that in turn makes everything else in my Life so much easier. I know me very well. No kidding folks, being me is the easiest thing I ever wake up and do. I just dance it out, figuritively and literally.

I remember one day picking up my daughter Karmen from school when she was in grade school. She was upset about a mosaic picture she had pieced together in art class that day. She didn't think it looked at all like the teachers mosaic. I looked at the picture and thought it was THE MOST beautiful mosaic I'd ever laid my eyes on and I told her so and that it wasn't supposed to look like anyone else's work. Further I said, "True art is your own interpretation." She said, "You're just saying that because you're my mom." I said, "You could be right but it doesn't change the fact that I Love it!" To this day I have her mosaic artwork beautifully framed. You all know how I feel about the Father/child relationship that I have with God, which is also a Parent/child relationship. This is the same as my parent/child relationship with my daughter Karmen or my grandparent/child relationship with my grandson Big Tree. When she or he is comfortable in their own skin and doing their own thing, it just tickles the heck out of me and makes me smile as her parent and as his grandparent. I can only imagine how God must be smiling upon us when we enjoy living in our skin and being the person that He created us to be. GRANNYBALL!

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

ROUGHING IT!

I still have bruises up and down the side of my thighs and torso from sleeping in that tent! When it comes to camping, you could easily classify me under the header, "Roughing It". I could throw a sleeping bag down on the ground anywhere and get a Good night's sleep. I don't use bagged charcoal and prefer to cook over an open flame and create my own charcoals. And lighter fluid? That's for rookies! As long as I have my camp knife, my boots, a canteen of water and a match, I'm unstoppable.

The first night my grandson "Big Tree" (5, Taurus) and I were camping last week, we goofed around until we ended up having to put the tent up after dark. Even though I always rent a cabin for us so that we have a secure place to store all of our gear, we still sleep in a small tent and "rough it" as much as possible. Big Tree and I are huge fans of Bear Grylls of Discovery Channel's Man vs. Wild, and we like to learn new survival tips and act like we're out in the wildness living off the fat of the land, a whole lot of nerve and God's Grace. We also like to pay attention to our own survival instincts and refer to everything as our "source" . . . water source, food source, fire source, etc.

That first night I tossed and turned all night. We set the tent up as usual, lined the inside floor with the heavy duty canvas tarp, prepared the sleeping bags, put a flashlight on his side and a flashlight on my side and we were Good to go. The only problem was the ground around the entire cabin area was rocky even though there was plenty of grass. Talk about roughing it. I couldn't get comfortable to save myself. The next day, the first thing we did was go out to buy an air mattress. I couldn't believe that I was going to break down and buy an air mattress but my sides were beat to a pulp. Interestingly enough, Big Tree said he was comfortable and slept like a rock. (no pun intended) I didn't bring extra blankets to line the floor of the tent simply because the sleeping bags always did the trick.

The next morning I woke up to my usual Big Tree morning greeting, which is him honking my nose and pulling on my lips. He's an early bird (like myself) only earlier and enjoys giving his granny a hard time at the break of dawn. As we laid there on the air mattress stretching and growing I said to Big Tree, "Wow, this is comfortable! Aren't you glad we bought this air mattress?" Big Tree said, "I slept fine the way we were. You bought the air mattress for yourself."

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

HOW WAS MY TRIP?

Sorry the daily horoscopes were not updated yesterday. After being on the road by myself for 9 full days with my 5 year old grandson "Big Tree" and then ending the whole road trip with a heavy metal Motley Crue concert, I had to take the time to get my personal space back in order, put my stuff away, open mail, etc.

The first 5 days "Big Tree" and I spent in Cherokee, North Carolina (the Cherokee Indian Rservation) visiting my parents, sister, aunts, uncles and 15 million cousins. "Big Tree" is still amazed and confused at how many kin he actually has in Cherokee. We spent a lot of time with my sister, Ahinawake's (pronounced Ah-nah-wake) two grandchildren (Hallie and Terrell) and my Aunt Jackie's two grandchildren (Rori and Roxy) swimming in the Oconaluftee River, fishing and eating more ice cream than they should have been allowed. Oh well, that's why Aunt Loretta is so fun. (winky wink)

Then we drove back to St. Louis, stayed the night and went camping the next morning at Lake of the Ozarks in the heart of Missouri. Even though I always rent a cabin for us, we still sleep in the tent. It's just nice to have a comfortable place to put our stuff. We did have one night where it lightly rained and I didn't have the small tarp covering the air holes in the roof of the tent so at about 3:00 AM we had a scramble session to get it covered, then we laid there and giggled about it. Big Tree and I also bought new matching fishing poles at The Lake and had some marathan fishing outings. I did have to promise Karmen that I wouldn't bring him home smelling like power bait or have any dead cricket legs stuck to his arms and neck like last time. (winky wink)

After rolling back into town Sunday afternoon and first unloading at my daughter Karmen's house, we went to my storage locker and unloaded the camping gear, then went to my sister Cis' house to drop off the things I brought back for her from Cherokee. In order to save time, I showered and pulled a quick change artist at Cis' and then we swung by and picked up my brother Jerry. After making a quick fly-by my place and unloading my things, then Karmen and Big Tree drove Jerry and I to the Motley Crue concert and dropped us off. This is a party-fest and nothing that we needed to be driving home from so at the end of the concert we hopped a cab. The cool thing was the cab driver was having so much fun with us singing that when we arrived at my place he didn't charge us the $40.00 cab fare. How cool is that?!?! Even though Jerry had to get up and go to work the next day, I felt okay with the decision to just get my personal space reorganized and my body rested from driving so many miles over the past 9 days.

I am settled back into my Ergonomically-Fitted-For-My-Rumpelstiltskin-Chair and the site is fully updated. Again, sorry about yesterday. My intentions were Good but my personal space needed my attention. It's kinda like being in school and not being able to study until you clean everything. That's how I was yesterday. Your Daily, Weekly and Monthly Horoscopes have been fully updated.

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

BLAME SHIFTERS

GREETINGS FROM LAKE OF THE OZARKS, MISSOURI! Last Friday (the 11th) my grandson "Big Tree" and I drove to Cherokee, North Carolina to spend a few days with family. We drove back to St. Louis all day Wednesday (10 hour drive) and then yesterday about Noon we drove another 2-1/2 hours to one of our favorite camp areas. We'll be here camping until Sunday. So we have nine full days together until we turn into a pumpkin. As usual, since the internet never closes, then neither do I and my mega-mondo-ninja-commando computer goes where I go. (winky wink) You know me folks, I take my work wherever I go so until Sunday all charts and readings will be done in the mornings or evenings.

Yesterday afternoon we were at the pool with just a few other people. There was a dad and his three teenage children (two girls and a boy). The dad meandered back to their campsite, the boy got up and wandered off somewhere and then the girls decided they were hungry and prepared to head back to their campsite when suddenly the older girl couldn't find her class ring. Each minute that passed the older girl became more hyper-incensed. Suddenly both girls started blaming their brother who left saying that he probably flailed his towel when he got up and the ring flew off into the grass. Next thing ya' know both parents came walking up when they saw the girls looking for something in the grass on the other side of the fence. It took all of six seconds for the blame game to begin.

"Layton probably flailed his towel and tossed it into the grass!You know how Layton is!It was on his towel and he knew it!You were the last one up.You should not have agreed to buy that expensive ring for her.I knew she couldn't handle a ring that expensive.Why didn't you tell her to leave the ring at home?Someone probably stole it!You saw it sitting there so why didn't you tell me you were leaving?I told you not to touch my ring!Layton was probably diving for it in the deep end.I'll bet he threw it on purpose.

Folks, this blame game from a family of blame shifters went on for at least an hour. It was incredible how quickly both parents threw their own child (Layton) under the bus and they weren't even there when Layton left. I saw the boy leave and he just got up and left with no flailing involved. No one even held the teenage girl accountable or responsible for her actions but they sure blamed each other. It was her ring! I could hardly believe how this family went on and on shifting the blame and solved nothing. Instead of working together to solve the problem, they completely fell apart. As my grandson and I continued to play in the three-foot end of the pool I thought, "Geez, I wonder how they handle something big?"

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

WELCOME TO MY WORLD

I'm often asked in e-mails how I personally handle negative energy in the world. Actually folks, I wrote a book on the subject . . no kidding! It really is all in my book, "And Who Are You?" through various stories and examples. Further, how I handle negativity is all on this website through these Daily Messages. I am continually writing to you how I handled this situation and that situation. Folks, I handle negative energy simply by 'not handling negative energy'. In other words, I don't take on anyone's stuff as my own and when I start rolling negative then I make a conscious choice to change my thoughts, actions and reactions. You may have heard the age old saying, "If you don't buy, then you don't own it!" Folks, I just won't buy it! It's a 2nd house self-worth thing and I just don't "spend" my energy that way. Do you know how easy it is to blame others for their negativity and the impact it has on your Life? Well think about this, it wouldn't be around you if you didn't resonate with it so much. OUCHY! MOM!

For those of you who missed my Daily Message last week called,Date Them Before You Marry Them, this message is all about not shoving your beliefs on others. Live your Life and do your best to have a positive impact on others. If someone wants to sit in all their negativity, that's fine with me because I will get up and leave without them and go about my Life. I won't use my minutes on the planet sulking and whining about what I don't have or what happened to me. I have a Life to live and I won't get caught up in someone else's drama, negativity, gossip or blame. See ya'!

"We are all just walking along, stumbling, tripping and slobbering all over ourselves just trying to figure it all out and get to the place that we need to be."Dr. Loretta Standley~

Certainly, I have friends and family members who don't even think the way I do. I mean not even close folks but that doesn't mean that we cannot co-exist on the planet, sing Kumbaya, laugh together and Love each other. Believe it or not, who they are actually makes me a better person. If I didn't accept who they are, then who the hell am I in all my positive spiritually enlightened self? (winky wink) See that's the problem folks, there are some people who feel as though they are on the spiritually enlightened path and put themselves above others who do not think the same way they do and that's just wrong! I don't shove my stuff on anyone or try to make them buy my line of thinking. How would you react to a pushy salesperson? I know when what I say doesn't register or mean jack! I know when someone isn't interested in my so-called 'words of wisdom' and it's okay. I live in "Loretta Mode" and if they enjoy who I am, then welcome to my world baby . . let's play . . and maybe, just maybe, my positive spiritually enlightened self just may rub off on them one day. In the meantime, this is how I roll.

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

JULY GENTLE REMINDERS

GREETINGS FROM CHEROKEE, NORTH CAROLINA! There's always one time during the month when it is the perfect to remind my visitors of a couple of things. I write these "gentle reminders" because there are new visitors who come to this site every day and maybe the newbies don't know some of my rules, shortcomings and gifts like you old timers. (winky wink)

1) First, no one stumbles upon this site. You were led to this site for a reason and I get that about you (and me) and how we found each other through this very cool means of communication.

2) The absolute easiest way to contact me is through telephone. My phone number is posted at the top of each page. Folks, I'm really not kidding. I'm a very fast moving individual and I like to get things taken care of quickly. It doesn't bother me one bit if you call. And as I ALWAYS SAY, if I answer the phone you have NOT interrupted me, so there is no need to apologize if you hear background noise. If you have me on the phone, then let's roll baby! I'd rather get you taken care of on the spot so you aren't waiting for an answer and I'm not getting backed up by e-mails that could have been taken care of in a split second through a Good old-fashioned telephone call.

3) Folks, sorry to be so blunt about this but I do not know about your Cherokee ancestry. I receive so many e-mails about family names and geneaology you wouldn't believe it. I do realize that I have been blessed to have a mom who is full-blood Cherokee and lives in Cherokee, North Carolina, which has made tracking my family ancestry a no-brainer all the way back to my great-great-great-great grandfather and grandmother. I'm blessed, I realize that but honestly, I don't know about yours. So when I receive e-mails that turn into books about someone's ancestry, I have nothing for you.

4) When it comes to astrology questions, the first thing I'm going to ask you is, "Do you know where your 1st house or 9th house are located?" My question has nothing to do with those two particular houses, I just want to know did you study the graphics I sent you in your Natal Chart to help you figure out where each house is located. So many people are in such a hurry to look for that one little piece of information that may change their Life that they end up missing the big picture. Before you call and ask a question for better understanding, please read those graphics first so we can get you taken care of quickly. Also, be ready when you call and have your Natal Chart in front of you because you could be catching me anywhere along my flighty path. Plus, it's a little tough to have someone call and then wait on them to turn on their computer, find their chart, find the page, etc. I think you get my drift.

5) If you call with astrology questions about relationships, how to work a conjunction that is happening right now, what should you do for a career or when will money get better for you . . that is actually an Insight Reading that requires an appointment. That's really not a question about understanding how to read your Natal Chart. I really want to make this easy for you. I'm all about easy peasy folks . . seriously, I don't want anything to be hard . . so feel free to call me no matter what and I will do whatever I need to do to get you on the right path.

6) If you read on this site that I am out of town (like I am now in Cherokee, NC) again don't worry about calling. Actually, I'm going to be in and out of town until early Fall, so if I don't care, then you shouldn't either. (winky wink) The worst thing that could happen is that I don't take calls and then I return home with a back up of a billion phone calls and then we all get behind. I'd rather take the time and do it. Believe me, you won't cramp my style one bit.

7) As I state on my contact button, I do not answer ANY health questions through e-mail. It's just too many e-mails to volley back and forth and when you get a lot of e-mails like I do and someone just e-mails back the word "yes" in response to my question . . I'm thinking, "Yes what? Who is this and what were we talking about?" I've already probably answered over a hundred e-mails by the time the person gets back to me, so please, no health questions through the e-mail. Just pick up the phone and ask away. It's almost too easy.

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

DATE THEM BEFORE YOU MARRY THEM

This morning my musical DLG (Download from God) was Martha and the Vandellas, which is a little before my time (winky wink) and they were singing "Dancing in the Street". This is interesting because last night at about 12:30 AM I was typing like a banchee on this website and decided to just stop. That's the way I am, when I've had enough I just stop and call it a day. So I called my close friend and neighbor Julie (Libra) knowing she would be up and the next thing I know we were sitting in her kitchen dancing around all kinds of spiritual wonderment until 5:30 AM this morning. After I nabbed my usual four hours of sleep I was ready to rock n' roll and jump into another day.

Julie and I were talking about all kinds of different spiritual outlets that we all use in order to keep ourselves connected to God. We danced from one subject to another and then we finally landed on what I call, "Date Them Before You Marry Them". Whatever your position happens to be on any given topic, you must always, "Date them before you marry them." Let's say Mr. Wonderful shows up at my door to take me to "the dance" and when the door opens my mom gives Mr. Wonderful a big hug and my dad proudly shakes his hand, then they both eagerly say, "Welcome to the family Mr. Wonderful!" Then here I come walking down the stairs, not in a prom dress but in a wedding dress. Now what do you think Mr. Wonderful is going to do. Your dang right he's going to bolt faster than Flash Gordon.

Folks, we're all doing "the dance" but often times we can become so excited about what we believe, whether that is spiritual, religious, moral, political, philosophical, ideological or ecological, that we miss an opportunity to connect with someone else and make a real difference. This could be someone in your own family. There is nothing worse than getting into one of these conversations with someone who dominates the airwaves and pushes their belief on everyone else. I can tell you one thing, that is no way to sway my opinion, how about you? At the same time I shouldn't do it to someone else but God only knows I've done that too. I'm a fairly outspoken person regarding all of these topics but there is a time and place for everything. No matter how I feel about abortion, the manatees, the environment, the election, capital punishment, Christianity or astrology . . in order to be heard, I need to do "the dance" and "date them before I marry them" . . . and so do you.

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

I'M A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING! All Rolled Into One

This morning I woke up hearing one of my typical musical DLGs (Downloads from God). This song typically comes to me when I wake up feeling feisty, rebellious and standing in my power (whatever that looks like today....hehehe). Not that I hate the world as the opening of this song states . . it's just a feistiness and a shake up that I connect with from the first line. This song is also My #1 Musical Totem. I've withheld this song from you many times simply because I didn't want to offend anyone but this morning I woke up a little ka-ray-zee, a whole lot of feisty and thinking, "Hey! It's my website, it's my ballpark, I built it, it's my rules and I can play the way I want!"

As I laid there listening to this song a vision flashed before my eyes last summer when I was sitting outside an outdoor cafe' in my neighborhood eating lunch with a friend. A former patient of mine walked up to say hello and was floored that I was eating meat. It was really strange because I've never had my fist in the air about eating meat but she had this picture painted of me as if I did. It reminded me of an episode of "Leave It To Beaver," when Beaver saw his teacher Mrs. Landers wearing sandals. With his eyes bugged out and his jaw dropped he says, "She has toes!"

There isn't one line in this song that isn't me and that's why it's not just My #1 Musical Totem, it's actually My Anthem! Remember a few weeks ago I told you about this man who said to me, "I'm still trying to figure you out Loretta." My response should have been a line from this song, "Just when you think you got me figured out, the seasons already changin', I think it's cool, you do whatcha' do, and don't try to save me". I know my sister Cis is probably watching this video and thinking that the black slip dress Meredith Brooks is wearing with those boots is something that I would wear too. (winky wink) I'm a little bit of everything, all rolled into one!

(The lyrics are below the video)

BITCH by MEREDITH BROOKS

I hate the world today
Your so good to me, I know
But I can't change
Tried to tell you but
you looked at me like maybe
I'm an angel underneath
Innocent and sweet

Yesterday I cried
You must have been relieved to see the softer side
I can understand how you'd be so confused
I don't envy you
I'm a little bit of everything
All rolled into one

I'm a bitch
I'm a lover
I'm a child
I'm a mother
I'm a sinner
I'm a saint
I do not feel ashamed
I'm your hell
I'm your dream
I'm nothing in between
You know you wouldn't want it any other way

So take me as I am
This may mean you'll have to be a stronger man
Rest assured that when I start to make you nervous
And I'm going to extremes
Tomorrow I will change
And today won't mean a thing

I'm a bitch
I'm a lover
I'm a child
I'm a mother
I'm a sinner
I'm a saint
I do not feel ashamed
I'm your hell
I'm your dream
I'm nothing in between
You know you wouldn't want it any other way

Just when you think you got me figured out
The seasons already changin'
I think it's cool, you do whatcha' do
And don't try to save me

I'm a bitch
I'm a lover
I'm a child
I'm a mother
I'm a sinner
I'm a saint
I do not feel ashamed
I'm your hell
I'm your dream
I'm nothing in between
You know you wouldn't want it any other way

I'm a bitch
I'm a tease
I'm a goddess on my knees
When you're hurt
When you suffer
I'm your angel undercover
I've been numb
I'm revived
Can't say I'm not alive
You know I wouldn't want it any other way

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

IT'S A GET TO

Last night some friends and I went to another concert in the park, which is one of our typical activities at least one night during the week. St. Louis has loads of outdoor concerts all spring and summer long in various parks throughout the City. Last night we enjoyed the sounds of a concert band called, The Compton Heights Band, which began as a little neighborhood band in someone's living room and has now grown to a full concert band with over 50 band members. It was awesome laying there on a blanket next to a massive old tree while this concert band played from an old time gazebo. It felt like I was in the setting of an old town square.

There is never a loss of anything to do here in St. Louis and I'm talking for FREE! I don't mind paying if it's worth it but I do enjoy FREE! All we had to do was show up with a blanket, picnic basket and a bottle of wine. I've often wondered what the heck people are talking about when they say there is nothing to do in St. Louis. I'm thinking, "What planet are you from dude? What's not to do in St. Louis and for FREE!?!?" We have FREE concerts, FREE museums, a FREE zoo, a FREE science center and the list goes on and on of FREEBIES. I believe those who are bored with their Life are just not showing up for Life especially when there is so much handed over for FREE. Believe me folks, the planet will still spin even if you don't participate, create or engage in a Life of your own . . . but why not contribute to the spin of the planet and get a Life! You've been given a Life for FREE. Given! You didn't have to do a dang thing for it because you were Graced with it by God. Watcha' gonna do with it? Think about that. You "get to" do what you want with it. You don't "have to" do anything. It's a "get to" and all you have to do is show up!

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

The pic below was taken at Elder's Day last October when my mom (left) received "The Funniest Comic Elder" Champion Award and her friend Glenda (right) received "The Dancing with the Elders" Champion Award. For those of you new to the site or to this Daily Message page, click here for my Cherokee family history.

NOW TELL ME WHAT 'YOU' SEE

I live by some fairly simple relationship courtesy rules of communication and one of them is, "If you don't tell me, then I don't know." Yesterday I was sitting outside at an outdoor cafe' with my friends Margie (Virgo) and Christine (Aquarius) when a mother and her toddler (age 2 or 3) walked by and the little boy said, "You're walking too fast." Immediately the mother slowed her pace enough so that the little boy was now walking beside her instead of being tugged along by one hand. The little boy made a clear statement, the mother heard him, understood him and then met him at his level. Being heard and being understood are two different things.

Is it really fair that we make toddlers walk according to our pace? Consider how short their legs are in comparison to ours. I remember when my daughter Karmen was a toddler and I had to walk slower because one of my steps equaled three of hers. Not only that, I'm a fast walker so requiring her to keep up with me would not have only been unfair, it would have been cruel and thoughtless to put her little body through that kind of workout. Still, as a fast-moving, multi-tasking young mother, I'm pretty certain there were times when I did just that and snapped, "Come on, hurry up!" . . . but most of the time I was pretty clear that I was the adult and she was a child and that I had to meet Karmen at her level rather than requiring her to meet me at mine. After all, I had been that age and size before but she had yet to be mine.

I want to be clear that 'coming down a level' or 'going up a level' in no way makes one person better or smarter than the next. 'Coming down a level' or 'going up a level' should never be seen as minimizing one person and maximizing another person. That's just ridiculous thinking. In order to relate to one another, it is essential that we meet each other at a level that rhymes with each other's experience and knowledge. That just makes logical sense. Sometimes we can't even meet each other half way simply due to life experience and knowledge so we have to either 'come down a level' or 'boost someone up a level'. When you are communicating with toddlers or adults there will be times when you will have to literally trade places in order to gain a better understanding. For instance, if I was standing in a crowd with Karmen and she couldn't see, I wouldn't stoop down and meet her at that level because then neither of us would be able to see. The obvious move would be to literally pick her up and bring her up to my level. I might even take her higher than me and put her on my shoulders so she can see further, possibly even better than me and from a different perspective. Now tell me what 'you' see Karmen and bring me up to your level. Life, it's such a dance.

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

HO'OPONOPONO (TO MAKE RIGHT)

Ho'oponopono [pronounced Ho-opono-pono] with all the o's sounding like the word "oh" means "to make right" particularly with ancestors or anyone with whom you have had a relationship with that 'you' may have done harm to either on purpose or on accident. This is 'not' about what they did to you. It's about you taking responsibility for your part and forgiving what you allowed into your Life through your own doing. It is a Hawaiian Code of Forgiveness and is used to correct the wrongs in your own Life. So while you are in the midst of forgiveness during this ritual, you are really on the path to forgiving yourself (and them) because Ho'oponopono requires your own personal responsibility. The process of Ho'oponopono is to correct family or relationship patterns that are in need of moving along their spiritual progression path. This is a time to break family patterns, stigma's and limiting beliefs that have bound you to a path that is not serving you.

Regardless of how you feel about doing Ho'oponopono, this is NOT a lucky charm. This is a process of forgiveness and 'making it right'. It is important to remember that you are connecting with Source (God) during this whole process. Your connection with Source is what matters. Believe me, He gets you.

I have practiced Ho'oponopono for about 15 years now about twice a year. Not only do I go through the motions of correcting my energy with family members, romantic relationships, friendships and acquaintances, I also bring to mind complete strangers who I remember being shallow, condescending and rude to. Instead of beating myself up, this is an opportunity for me 'to make right' with myself what I did and take full and complete responsibility for what my actions and reactions did to my spirit, not to mention theirs.

I always practice Ho'oponopono on a high holiday. This would be any holiday that has Good energy associated with it such as; New Years, Easter Sunday, my birthday, the Fourth of July, Christmas, etc. Since here in the United States we will be celebrating our "Independence Day," tomorrow on July the 4th, this is one of the days that I always choose to perform Ho'oponopono and use it as my own personal "independence day".

Since you are receiving this message a day early to the Fourth Of July, take the time to sit and write down every single person that comes to mind who you have issues with and need 'to make right'. Keep in mind, this is 'to make right' with yourself through forgiveness and what this did to your spirit due to your own thoughts and actions. This is a cleaning and clearing process.

Before I begin Ho'oponopono I always take the time to clean my space of energy, items or anything that has a negative association to it. In a hasty fashion, I will dust, mop and clean anything I can get my hands on. I do this in haste in order to stir up the energy (kicking up the dust so to speak). As I am cleaning, clearing and remembering as much as possible then I will say my list outloud and often times I end up having to read the list of people because the list is so long. I read it outloud in order to get the energy 'out there' and prepared to send off into the ethers to its spiritual progression path.

After I have cleaned in haste, I will time it just right to sit down at a time that is special to me and I will again state outloud each name and remain with that name for a moment in order to experience the forgiveness of what I did to myself through my thoughts, words or actions even if they drew first blood so to speak and my response was to their ugliness. I am taking responsibility for my part.

HO'OPONOPONO INSTRUCTIONS

1. Make a list of all family, romantic relationships, friends, acquaintances and strangers with whom you feel misaligned, a lack of support, bad vibes, unfinished business, an ugly turn of events, etc. Again, remembering your part of the scene and what you allowed and taking responsibility for it.

2. As you call out each person's name, take the time to be with the scene in your mind. Picture a stream of Infinite Love coming to you from Source (God) flowing straight into your Crown Chakra [top of the head]. Remain with this energy until you feel it flow to you, in you and through you. Allow Source (God, Infinite Love) to flow through you. This can be a very emotional moment so be prepared. Infinite Love (God) is real and powerful. If you are centered and in the moment, you will feel the healing and know that everything is okay and you forgive not only them, but yourself as well.

3. You may feel like having a conversation with this person at this time (even though they aren't present) so that you can say everything you need to say. Put it out there! Remember, you are taking responsibility for how you acted, not how they acted. Stay with this person in your mind until you feel the forgiveness and you are ready to let it go.

4. If there is a cord that needs to be cut with this person, you might visualize a cord between you and that person. Picture the cord like a piece of taffy that is attached to you and that person. Connect the cord to the area on your body that was injured (mind, heart, stomach, genitals) and picture them floating away from you until the taffy stretches and finally breaks as they float along to their spiritual progression path. God will take care of the rest but you must do your part and turn it over to Him.

5. If this is a present relationship where the cord does not need to be cut but the area of the body needs to be healed, then allow Infinite Love (God) to work through the hurt and heal this area right now. Stay with it until you feel it healed. Again, this could be a very emotional moment so be prepared.

6. Now move on to the next person on your list. Some of the people on your list you will find that you have no attachment. There will be no cord, such as strangers or acquaintances and it will be easier to move on.

7. My suggestion on the time of day is a time that feels special to you. As many of you know the 3:00 PM hour is special to me because Jesus is My Man and 3:00 PM was the time of His death, which was the 9th Jewish Hour. Jewish hours (Biblically) began at 6:00 AM, which makes 3:00 PM the 9th Jewish Hour. You might choose your time of birth, high noon or another time that feels Good for you. Whatever makes you feel comfortable is the time that you should choose. I doubt God in His Infinite Love cares what time you do this forgiveness process. The point is that you are taking the time to do it.

8. I do this on a high holiday because there is so much celebration, jubilation and happiness in the air and I want the process to be as positive and wonderful as possible for everyone involved. You can actually do this whenever you want. Again, God gets you and I doubt that the date makes any difference to Him. The point is that you are taking yourself through a forgiveness process and I'm certain He's cool with it whenever you choose to do it.

9. After I have completed the list, now is the time when I open all the windows and doors to release all of those names out into the ethers and also releasing all of that energy that I stirred up in my hasty cleaning. While the windows and doors are open I walk around stating a prayer and adding to that prayer that I want all of the energy that has been stirred up to be sent along its spiritual progression path. Basically, I'm asking God to handle it now and I thank Him for being with me through this healing and clearing process. I normally leave the doors and windows open for about an hour as old energy is released and I invite new, wonderful, beautiful and Loving energy into my new space.

10. You may choose ANY prayer that feels comfortable for you or just make up your own. I had at one time a prayer that was given to me when I first did Ho'oponopono fifteen years ago but it was all in Hawaiian and I don't like saying things that I don't know what they mean. Even if it was translated, I still feel more comfortable with a prayer that resonates with my spirit. Okay, I'm a rule breaker but again, I doubt God in His Infinite Love cares what prayer you choose. The point is that you have taken part in a forgiven process and you are ending the process with a prayer and thanking Him for being with you every step of the way. If you are having trouble finding or writing a prayer, just take a peek under the Guidance Button and look for the Awesome Prayers. You can also say a Novena if you like. There are plenty of Novena's right here. Novena's are generally said for 9 hours or 9 days so if you want to begin the Novena for 9 days at the end of Ho'oponopono, then I doubt God in His Infinite Love will mind. I'm certain He gets the jest of what you are doing and there is no right or wrong way when you are having a real conversation with Him.

11. Again, regardless of how you feel about doing Ho'oponopono, this is NOT a lucky charm. This is a process of forgiveness and 'making it right'. It is important to remember that you are connecting with Source (God) during this whole process. Your connection with Source (God) is what matters most.

12. Ho'oponopono does end with a repentance prayer. You can make up your own or you can use The Act of Contrition Prayer. Once again, I doubt that it makes a difference to God if you use this prayer or one of your own that makes you feel most comfortable. What matters is your desire to be forgiven by Him. Your connection with Source (God) is what matters most. Believe me, He gets you. Now go enjoy your newfound independence.

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

TELL ME WHAT IT TAKES

This morning I woke up hearing all kinds of different musical DLGs (Downloads from God) that had the same theme or similar block of lyrics. I know for a fact that I have never heard any of those songs before except for one (Aerosmith's) and they all had the same theme in the chorus which was something to the effect of . . . "whatever it takes" or "what does it take". It was one of those strange musical DLG mornings where the songs kept changing quickly as if a radio dial was being turned so my brain would tune into one of them. It felt as thought my brain was trying to tune into the song that would somehow prompt the Daily Message that I was supposed to write today. I heard Celine Dion, Bon Jovi, Leona Lewis, George Harrison, Lifehouse, Micheal McDonald and then finally I heard Aerosmith.

The theme of this particular song had absolutely nothing to do with the Daily Message that I instantly knew I was suppose to write. For some odd reason I wasn't tuning into the DLG theme of "what it takes" until I heard Steven Tyler from Aerosmith belt out, "Tell me what it takes . . ." and then I knew exactly what this was DLG was about. A vision took me back a few days ago when my grandson Big Tree "5" and his friend Max "7" were over and in the midst of them wrestling around Big Tree fell to the floor from exhaustion and said, "What does it take to get a drink around here?" I looked him square in the eye with my serious but gentle granny look and said, "You have to say please and then thank you."

As many of you know from coming to this site long enough, I live my Life seeing God purely as The Father and me as the little child. I fully embrace and live the Father/child, Parent/child, Authority/child relationship between Him and myself. Having said that, I do believe my DLG (Download from God) was a full-blown message of His response back to us in the midst of all of our wants, needs, desires, complaining, whining and carrying on. While in our mind we might be crying out to God, "What is it going to take to get what I want?" His Fatherly, Parenting and Authoritative Response back to us is, "You have to say please and thank You."

"Now get out there, go place yourself UP! and practice being you." -- Dr. Loretta Standley

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